Jade and Alex continued to text each other, trying their best to find days they could hang out together but Alex's crazy schedule made it a challenge. They went out to eat a few times and Jade felt herself growing more and more attracted to the Tiger. She wasn't afraid to be around him anymore since she has found that he doesn't judge her.

Jade was finishing the final touches on her makeup—she and Alex were going to the Detroit Zoo—when her phone rang. "Hello?" She said pleasantly, not even bothering to check the caller I.D.

"Hey, it's raining," Alex said from the other line, disappointment in his voice.

"Oh, no! I haven't even checked outside—I've been getting ready!" Jade poked her head out of her bathroom to find a downpour slamming against her windows.

"So is there another place you have in mind that we could go to?"

"Well, you could always just come over to my place," she replied without thinking it through.

There was hesitation on the other end. "Are-are you sure?"

"Yeah! We could watch a movie, order takeout and maybe play some games or something; it'll be fun!" Jade said with nonchalance.

"All right… I'll be over in a few."

"Kay!" Jade chirped. She ended the call and texted her address to Alex.

Jade did understand that Alex was nervous—she wasn't oblivious to that. She was a tad uneasy about it too, but they were getting along so great and he would have to come over sooner or later. She just brushed the thoughts off and continued with her makeup.

The buzzer went off and Jade padded over to it. "Come on up," she said quickly, unlocking the door for Alex. A few moments later, there was a knock at the door. She opened it to find Alex drenched in the hallway. "Oh my God, you're soaked!" She laughed.

"Yeah," he said with false frustration. "Like I said, it's raining."

"Well, come on in," she offered, gesturing to her apartment. "Let me take your jacket and hang it up…" Jade pulled the piece of clothing off Alex and walked into her bathroom to drape it over the shower. She then came back into her living room to find Alex taking a peek around. "Like what you see?" She said amusingly, crossing her arms.

Alex jumped a little—he didn't see her there. "Yeah, nice place…"

"Yeah, it's all right. I like it." There was a moment of silence. "Go ahead, you can ask…"

"What?" Alex asked, turning to look at Jade.

"How I afford this place—you can ask me how. I know you're wondering it." Jade shrugged.

"H-how do you afford this place..?" He was wondering it. It was a [i]nice[/i] apartment and she was just an aspiring model.

Jade strode over to Alex. "Well," she began. "I saved everything I earned doing… well, dancing. I don't mean to be improper, but I would make like a thousand dollars a night doing what I did—and that didn't include bachelor parties." She cocked an eyebrow and Alex started to turn red again.

Alex stared into Jade's lovely blue eyes and thought for a moment. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Shoot—I'm an open book with you at this point." Jade smiled assuredly.

"Why-why did you… dance?" His brows furrowed, just waiting for Jade to lash out at him.

"That, Alex, is a [i]very[/i] good question. But it's a sit-down kind of conversation." She turned on her heel and plopped down on her couch, patting the spot next to her. He followed her, taking a seat next to her—but not too close. "When I moved to Detroit, I was planning to go to Mercy—I was accepted and everything, but I hated it. College life was not for me. I've always been told that I'm pretty enough to be a model and I guess I take it too seriously…" Jade bit her lip and then continued. "I didn't have a job and I didn't have any money, so I started to dance. I know, I know—there are other possibilities out there but to be honest, I just love to dance—I just don't like all the grabby men. But it was a sacrifice I made. Part of me is extremely ashamed of it but the other part of me loved it because I learned so much about myself. So, that's that…" She grimaced, waiting for Alex's reaction.

Alex was quiet for a moment, absorbing all that Jade has said. "I understand that…"

"What? What part?" Jade's eye widened a little bit.

"You took something that you loved and made it a job… that's what I did—and still do." Alex was trying his best to fully comprehend what Jade was explaining to him. He really didn't know what to say so he just kind of said the first thing that popped into his head—baseball. How could he connect this with baseball..?

Jade smirked. This guy was too good to be true—he's either really pervy and it turned him on or he was just that understanding. She figured and was hoping it was the latter considering he was a red tomato when she was giving him a lap dance.

"I have another question…" Alex mentioned, wincing as he put his finger up.

"Uh, go ahead…"

"Did you ever um… ya know… with your, what are they called? Clients?" He bit his lip—now this question was surely going to send her over the edge, but he had to ask it.

"Oh, God no!" She scoffs humorously. "I may not be the best Catholic in the world, but I'm not [i]that[/i] bad, don't worry." She began to laugh and Alex joined in. "Ah, now I have a question for you…"

"Go ahead," Alex said, nodding.

"Have you, um, told anyone about me?" Jade tilted her head to the right. "I mean, I know we've only been seeing each other a few weeks, but I was just wondering…"

"No, I haven't... I figured I'd talk to you first before I put you into that position." Alex felt bad all of a sudden—was she just looking for her fifteen minutes of fame?

"I haven't told anyone about you either—not even Melanie," Jade replied.

Well, guess that answers that question. "Really? Wow…"

"Like you, I didn't want to put you in that position. I didn't feel I had the right to." Jade's mouth slanted.

"Well, thank you for that, and I don't mean to offend you by saying that. It's just… I wouldn't want it to ruin what we have here. I don't think it—[i]we're[/i] ready for that."

"Yeah, I agree." Jade smiled and it was followed by a few second of silence. "Well, do you want to watch a movie?"

"Uh, sure! Which one?" Alex repositioned himself in his seat.

"Let's see…" Jade got up and walked over to her entertainment center, opening up the doors to the cabinets full of movies. "I have all these and then a bunch of pirated ones on my Xbox 360." She looked back at the catcher over on the couch.

"I don't care. What are you in the mood for?"

"Disney?" It seemed ridiculous for Jade to suggest such a thing—they were both adults. But she didn't want to have anything sexual sneaking onto the TV—she could already feel the tension between them… or maybe it was just her.

"Name some off…"

"Let's see… Mulan, Beauty and the Beast, Tangled, and ooh! Aladdin! I absolutely love this movie. I would watch it every day when I was five—that and Nightmare Before Christmas."

"Interesting combination…" Alex commented, suppressing a laugh. "Do you want to watch that one? You can pick."

Jade thought a moment—there was [i]some[/i] sexual tension between Jasmine and Aladdin but she could handle it. "Yeah, this one." She turned on the flat screen and the DVD player. She popped the disc in and skipped back onto the couch, jumping down next to Alex—this time, right next to him. Their thighs were even touching it made Jade's heart flutter.

Throughout the duration of the 90-minute movie, Jade and Alex gradually got closer to each other. Alex was even bold enough to wrap his arm around her and that led Jade to curl up and rest her head on his chest.

As the credits scrolled by, Jade looked up at Alex just as he was looking down at her. They stared into each other's eyes, enticed by what they saw. Alex finally got the courage to crane his neck down, prompting Jade to lift hers up. Their lips met and sparks flew. Jade lied on her back, pulling Alex on top of her by this shirt. Their tongues wrestled back and forth as their eyes closed, enjoying the exquisite moment.

Alex's hand started on Jade's thigh and traveled to her hip, his, fingers playing with the belt loop of her jeans. Jade's shirt had naturally lifted up a few inches and Alex ran his fingertips across his skin, raising goose bumps. He smiled into the kiss as he grew harder. His hand then went under her shirt, still traveling farther and farther up.

"Wait, wait, wait," Jade said through kisses.

"What is it?" Alex asked, concerned.

"Your hand… it's up my shirt…"

Alex immediately pulled his hand out. "Oh, I'm sorry… I just thought…"

Jade sighed, putting her hands on either side of Alex's head, pulling him in for a quick kiss. "I want to so badly, you know have no idea," she said, lips pressed against his.

"Then what's stopping you?"

"We're not even officially dating… I don't want our relationship to start out like this. It's happened to me in the past and it always ended with major, unhealthy commitment issues. I don't want that to happen to us." She sighed again, feeling stupid.

Alex kissed Jade's forehead. "I understand. I'm sorry if I went to fast. I don't want you to ever feel pressured…"

"Oh, there's no need to pressure me. I'm good to go on that level," she giggled.

Alex chuckled and kissed her again. "I just hope we can finish this someday…"

"Oh, me too."

"Well, I should probably go. I've got stuff to do." Ahem, jerk off.

"Yeah, same here—lots of stuff." Ahem, masturbate.

Alex climbed off of Jade and walked toward the door.

"Wait, your jacket!" Jade quickly ran into the bathroom, snatching up the now-dry jacket.

"Thanks," Alex grinned. He kissed her once more.

"You're welcome," Jade replied with a girlish grin.